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Frequently Asked Questions Note: This page is under maintenance Invoices: Q: Will I receive an invoice? A: Yes, invoices for 2023 were distributed by end of January. For members who have paid the assessment each year, the invoice will include dues for 2023 only. If your property is not current on any dues from 2017 to 2022, the amount outstanding will be included in the 2021 invoice accordingly. Details regarding payment will be included in the invoice. You can also access the invoice online from our website. Q: How do I pay for multiple properties online? A: There are two options for the same as below, you can choose whichever is convenient for you.
Q: With the ongoing COVID-19 issue can the LPPOA extend the late payment due date? A: Yes, with full understanding of the financial difficulties resulting from the COVID 19 pandemic, the board members have extended the membership payment due date from April 1, 2021 until May 31, 2021. Q: I have received 3 separate invoices in the mail, which one do I have to pay? A: For any member with past due for their property, there are 3 invoices included, two of the three are copies of previous invoices and the third is the invoice for the current amount due. · 2020 reprint that, if applicable, includes past due fees from 2017 - This is for information · 2020 reprint of the $100 late fee for the past year - This is for information · 2021 current invoice - this is the only invoice you need to pay as it includes the total amount of past dues owed (from the above two invoices) - that amount is in the pink section. Q: I have past due amount to pay, but when try to pay its only giving me option to pay $195 due for 2021, how do I pay for previous amount due? A: There are two options you can take to pay for such scenarios:
https://secure.affinipay.com/pages/lakeparsippanypropertyownersassociation/dues
https://secure.affinipay.com/pages/lakeparsippanypropertyownersassociation/dues Communication: Q: How do I get informed/notified about various Events/Activities/open positions/volunteer opportunities? A: We publish all of these, on our website. Details for various events that are happening for the given month are available under the Calendar on the website. We send out Announcement emails for those to all members who are registered online for whom we have correct email address. So, we will strongly recommend members to register online from our website and subscribe for email communication. We make announcement for these on our Facebook page. Additionally, we send out specific announcement for various open positions and volunteer opportunities with details of those as and when applicable to members via email. Q: I have been sending questions via contact us, however either the response was very late, or I didn’t receive a response at all. What is going on? A: Kindly note that the LPPOA Board is comprised of volunteers. Each board member must balance his or her personal and professional responsibilities along with community interest. Your patience is appreciated. All communications are being read and will be addressed as soon as possible. In some cases, the questions are referred to another person and it takes time to determine a response.Q: What options do I have to voice my questions/concerns to LPPOA Board other than “Contact US” from the website? A: There are few options as below:
Budget: Q: Who determines what fee I must pay? A: The community elects or the existing board members appoint members to the LPPOA board to represent community interest and fiduciary obligation to LPPOA. The board collectively assesses the costs for operating the lake to determine the yearly budget and the membership dues are determined based on the approved budget in an LPPOA board meeting. Q: When do budget meetings take place? A: All information about the budget process and budget meetings can be found in the Bylaws. Art. II, Ch. 3. Meetings notifications are also provided on the calendar of the website. Q: Where can I get a copy of the 2021 budget? A: The LPPOA budget for the current year can be found on the website under the “About” section of the website. Q: What is the Board doing to keep membership fees from increasing? A: Every year the board works diligently to review the budget and expenses to run the lake, and the membership fee is structured to meet those obligations. We are also aiming to reduce the collection balance and legal fees. Ideally, if all members paid the assessed fees, it would help the board keep the membership fees at a stable rate. Q: Why can’t there be a cap on fees? Q: What is to stop fees from rising to an unaffordable level? A: It is true that expenses increase annually but the Board has no intention of raising fees without reasonable justification. While we hope all residents will pay their fair share, it will take some time to determine how many will be in arrears each year. However, the goal is to keep the dues and assessments reasonable and stable. Consider if every property paid $700, the budget would be about 1.4 million dollars. That is just not required to operate the lake. Keep in mind, however, that the fees to maintain the lake and property also include taxes and insurance costs, which will fluctuate.Membership: Q: What is the cost of membership? A: Please visit our Membership Page for details. Q: Last year I paid $115 for basic maintenance of the Lake and its properties. Why do I have to pay $195 this year? A: The originally assessed amount of $115 was developed based on the 2015 budget year. It was anticipated that the budget would change with all property owners joining the LPPOA. The lawsuit in 2017 prevented any further activity on the budget until it resolved in October 2019. At that time, it was too late to adjust the budget and the decision was made to proceed with the $115 amount. The 2021 budget is based upon actual expenditure of 2020 as well as more accurate and up-to-date estimates of operating costs in 2021. Many options for the fee structure were proposed and discussed at great length, however in consideration of the 2021 budget, and to comply with the DCA requirements, a $195.00 fee was decided as a membership fee for 2021. Q: What if I own multiple properties within the original purchase tract? A: Each property that is owned as a separate lot will be assessed separately. The owner is responsible for each property’s assessment. Each individual property is entitled to full membership including voting rights, badges, etc. Q: What is a member in good standing? A: Members in good standing are defined as members who have paid membership dues, assessments, fines, late payment charges, collection costs and are in compliance with all By-Laws, Rules, Regulations and Policies of LPPOA. Exceptions are made in certain circumstances, in compliance with statues and regulations governing common interest communities. Q: What happens if membership fees are not paid? A: The association has a collection policy that is posted on our website. In short, there are late fees and if the membership remains unpaid it is turned over to the attorney for collection activity. In 2020, the Board extended the due date from April 1 to July 30 in consideration of the impact resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, the Board has extended the due date from April 1 to May 31. Membership dues and assessments are mandatory. As the litigation was settled, all property owners will be given until the due date to bring their account current, including any prior assessments that were not paid. Owners who do not pay will be considered “not in good standing” under LPPOA’s By-Laws and the law affecting common interest communities. LPPOA has established a collection policy that will make the delinquent membership fee, late payment charge and costs of collections, including attorney’s fees, the responsibility of the delinquent property owner. Accounts that are not current will be assessed with late fees, then turned over for collections proceedings. Detailed information of the amount due for each account will be clearly stated in the invoice that is being sent to those property owners. If there are any additional questions, you can refer to the Collection Letter to understand your past due. Q: Is the LPPOA accepting membership from non-property owners? A: Non-Property owners (renters) residing within the original purchase tract (rental properties) may join as members with certain restrictions. Please visit the membership page on our website for more details. Our long-time members from outside of the Original Purchase Tract may continue to renew their memberships. No new memberships from outside of the Lake Community (OPT) are being accepted at this time. Q: Now that all 2,200 property owners have access to all benefits, how will the access to beach, parking in parking lot, etc. be managed? A: All access would be first-come, first-serve basis, if the beach reaches a capacity for the day, we will have to regretfully turn certain members away for the day. Q: Last year I never got my badges when the membership base was around 400 full members. What is the LPPOA doing to make sure this year with all 2,200 members having all benefit all the membership material will be sent to members (badges, car tags, boat tags etc.)? A: Last year was an extraordinary year with COVID-19 and membership jumping from 400 to 2,200. This year, we have ordered credit card style badges and once they arrive, we will announce dates and times when you can come pick them up at the Clubhouse. Q: I have not received my boat tags or badges yet. Can I still use the property? A: Membership badges and boat tags will be mailed out in the coming weeks. You are welcome to use the property as usual. While you wait for the tags and badges, please carry proof of payment while on the LPPOA property. Activities: Q: If LPPOA is unable to open the lake and its activities this year, will there be a refund? A: While we are still hoping to open the lake, LPPOA will of course follow all state and local regulations and orders during the coronavirus emergency. As you can see from the budget, a significant percentage of the operating costs is fixed, such as taxes, insurance, administration, etc. We may also incur additional costs this year in order to secure LPPOA property, address legal issues, and compliance with emergency orders. In the event our year-end financials reflect a net gain due to the shutdown of facilities, that gain can be considered for dues and assessments for 2022. However, in the event we cannot open certain facilities and offer certain activities, we will not be offering any refunds to any members. Q: How do I join a Club? A: LPPOA offers many opportunities for those who want to join a Club. Please see the website for a description of each Club, when they meet, and contact information. Q: What’s the plan to open the beaches? A: We would like to open all beaches, but they require extensive repair. The determination of whether to open the additional beaches will be based on membership use, anticipated income and other expenses. Each beach costs about $25-30k per year to operate. That is a significant investment if the amenity is not fully leveraged. We are in the process of hiring beach managers and lifeguards. Depending on that progress, we will announce if and when we can open the beach, including days and times it will be open. Q: Previously we could bring a guest to the beach, now that all 2,200 members have access to all LPPOA facilities, will guests be allowed? A: Every household will receive 4 badges and they can be used for guest. If your household has more people, we will accommodate with extra badges at no cost pursuant to verification. If we are able to open the beach, you will be allowed to purchase day passes for the guests. All guests must be accompanied by the member who has invited the guest. Q: Are we going to be able to rent the beach for a birthday party or other events as we were used to before? A: Even though it was allowed in the past, now we have 2,200 members to account for. We will make the proper announcements once we decide on that. General: Q: What is the Lake Parsippany Property Owners Association (LPPOA)? A: The LPPOA is a private lake association that maintains the lake, beaches, Clubhouse and other common property for the benefit of the Lake Parsippany community. Q: What is a Property Easement? A: The New Jersey Superior Court found Lake Parsippany is a common interest community and that each of the 2,200 property owners had been granted rights to the use of the common properties, including the lake, by virtue of an easement in their chain of title to their property, and by the fact that their lots are depicted on a map filed with Morris County at the time of the original development of the community. Q: What is the Assessment? A: The basic premise is that with the benefit of having certain deeded rights, you need to help with the burden of maintenance. The concept is often referred to as “Fair Share.” Basically, every home within the original purchase tract of Lake Parsippany will be required to pay annual dues. The annual dues for membership allow the property owners and their family members full privileges in the community. For details of all privileges available, please visit our Membership Page. Q: What is the Original Purchase Tract (OPT)? A: The map of Lake Parsippany was approved by the Township and filed with the Morris County Clerk at the time of the original development of the community, in eight sections, between 1933 and 1935. The properties included on that map are referred to as the original purchase tract. Q: Why has the LPPOA imposed a mandatory assessment? A: The LPPOA must comply with state regulations related to lakes and dams. The LPPOA also pays for taxes, insurance, lake water quality management and dam inspections, which became increasingly difficult to manage with only voluntary payments. Because of these obligations, multiple courts in New Jersey have affirmed the rights of a private lake association to assess all properties in their community, even when membership was previously voluntary. After reviewing the status of the law, in 2017, LPPOA imposed a mandatory assessment of all residents of the community as a basic maintenance fee. Q: Can the LPPOA do this? A: Yes, according to a NJ Superior Court judgment. A group of property owners (Plaintiffs) filed a lawsuit against LPPOA in opposition to the mandatory fee, and the entire community was later joined in a class action suit. The Plaintiffs argued that LPPOA did not have the authority to assess them, and the community, if it ever existed, had been abandoned long ago. The Court found not only did LPPOA have the authority to impose a mandatory assessment, but that it had administered the assessment fairly. Q: Who is affected? A: All properties that fall within the original purchase tract of Lake Parsippany are members of LPPOA, as a result of the litigation. Therefore, all of them are affected. Q: How do I register for an account online? A: Step by step instructions to register online is available the HERE. Q: Where can I get a copy of the bylaws? A: The bylaws can be found on the website under the “About” section of the website. Q: Where can I get a copy of the Rules and regulations? A: The Rules and Regulations can be found on the website under the ”About” section of the website. Q: If I did not own the property in 2017, why am I responsible to pay fees from that year? A: All property owners are required to pay fees for 2017. The owner of the property was served with a class action suit in 2017 and should have informed any buyer of the pending lawsuit. You will need to discuss this with your attorney and title company as this should have been disclosed at time of closing. Q: How is the board elected and how long is each term? A: All information about the Board elections can be found in the Bylaws. Art. IV. | Upcoming events
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